Swells is the latest solo exhibition by Iranian-born artist Maryam Hoseini, known for her evocative mixed-media works that blur the boundaries between painting, drawing, and architectural space. On view at Green Art Gallery until 24 May 2025, the show is a compelling continuation of Hoseini’s inquiry into how bodies occupy, disrupt, and transcend the spaces imposed upon them.
The exhibition presents a new body of work where Hoseini’s signature semi-abstract figures, neither wholly human nor entirely deconstructed, inhabit ambiguous, dreamlike settings. These environments suggest both containment and intimacy, echoing the constraints of cultural and bodily autonomy that underpin much of the artist’s work. The title Swells alludes to both emotional crescendos and physical expansions, suggesting a state of becoming, of resisting fixed form.
About the artist
Maryam Hoseini (b. 1988, Tehran, Iran), who resides in New York (USA), obtained a BFA from Sooreh Art University (Tehran) in 2012 and a MFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and Bard College (NY) in 2016.
Hoseini’s practice involves using acrylics, oil paints, ink, and pencils on paper and wood; the artist often applies details with pencil on top of layers of paint. With a distinct visual language characterised by fragmented bodies (often female), flattened perspectives, and muted pastel palettes, Hoseini delves into themes of identity and dislocation. Often described as both poetic and politically charged, Hoseini’s work also addresses power structures with a subtle but insistent force.
Hoseini’s artworks have been displayed in multiple exhibitions across the globe, such as Women on the Verge (Rhona Hoffman Gallery, Chicago, IL, USA, 2023); cadavre exquis (Galleria Massimo Minini, Brescia, Italy, 2022); Fables of Resurrection (Deborah Schamoni, Munich, Germany, 2020); Of Strangers and Parrots (solo) (Rachel Uffner Gallery, NY, 2017); and Night at the Museum (MOMA PS1, Long Island City, NY, 2016), to name a few.
Among Hoseini’s accolades are the Artist Teaching Residency (Knoxville, TN, 2021) and Luminarts Visual Arts Fellowship (Chicago, IL, USA, 2016). In 2018, Hoseini was an Artist in Residence at Ox-Bow School of Art and Artists’ Residency (Saugatuck, MI, USA).
To get more information about Swells, please go to the official web page of the exhibition.
In addition, you might be interested in exploring Rooms for Error by Nadine Ghandour and Unraveling by Huda Lutfi.
To stay updated with the latest art news, you can join our Telegram channel.
